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Randall Goodgame may be the best artist that you have never heard. His songwriting follows the cardinal rule for writers: show not tell! With that in mind, I will try to show what I mean from some of his lyrics. 

In the first song, which is in three parts, he lets us see the characters from the Peanuts comic strip in all their glory. In "Part 1 (Ode to Schroeder)" Schroeder’s little green piano lies silent on the floor. "Well it may sound funny but I cried / the day I found out Schroeder died / little green piano on the floor / won’t be making music anymore." 

But it’s not just Schroeder that died. "Oh, Charlie Brown, Charlie Brown what’s it like in God’s hometown / do the angels make Lucy keep the football down." 

In Part 2 Randall remembers watching his "father fall asleep inside the Times and I would steal away the cartoons." Those days are now but a memory. "But now I read the news today / it takes my breath away … these days I just try to find a tune beneath my hands and lose myself in chords and rhymes." 

In "Part 3 (Cartoon Auction)" the paper announces the time—everything is for sale—the football, the mailbox and the doghouse. It reminds us that "if you love, be prepared to lose."

References to war pop-up in several songs. Schroeder plays "like Harry Truman without the atom bomb / without the burden of a third world war." "Susan Coats’ Pants" are camouflage pants bought at a thrift store that have her name indelibly printed on them. After speculating about why they were discarded, Randall admits they will never fit him for "soldiers die setting people free / and that’s more like Jesus than I’ll ever be." "So Far Away" is dedicated to a friend who spent a year in Iraq away from his wife and new baby girl.

Variations on the word "Je ra," the words of freedom from India’s oppressed "untouchable" caste, —the Dalits—open to the sound of a third world rhythm on "Share The Well." Randall writes for Cademon’s Call, and this song is the title track on their latest release. The liner notes explain that in many places in India, the Dalits are forbidden from drawing from the town well. They have to wait for someone to share with them, and often no one does. The chorus encourages us all to "Share the well, share with your brother / share the well my friend / it takes a deeper well to love one another / share the well my friend."

The music on this release varies but might best be described as Americana or folk with a little blues and even some atmospheric guitars on "She’s Gone Forever." Randall’s wife Amy provides excellent harmony vocals, and Ben Shive, Kenny Meeks, and others provide outstanding support.

On "Dear America" Randall remembers the time when "I called America friend." The beautiful accordion work that graces the song adds a fitting touch to his lament.

"The Legend of Pope Joan" is a somewhat humorous blues romp that tells the story of someone who lived a lie.

An introduction by Andrew Peterson and scattered applause throughout makes us feel like we are listening to a live recording of an opening act in the "The Opener." "I am the opener, come to play my song / I am the opener, and it won’t be long before I am gone / I am the opener."

With references to war, where does the "peace" side of the title come in? Randall met a mother of eight sons in Ecuador that had little more than "just bricks on a dirt floor," but could say, "Jesus is all I need." The contrast to the reality of war is this woman, who "knows the peace of God." This is the message of "I Did Not Catch Her Name." He later learned that her name was Tugulinago, and her children grew up in the Compassion school in Otavalo. Her story reminds us that Jesus is all that we need.

Songwriting that is alternately humorous and profound make _War and Peace_ original and unique. It’s an apt commentary and soundtrack for our time—sobering but hopeful.

The CD packaging also features delightful colorful images from the famous comic strip. It brings us back to those memorable characters.

Probably most of us can identify with Randall when he tells us, "Sometimes I feel like Charlie Brown all alone up on the pitcher’s mound like a-hundred runs down." We can only wonder now how different it will be, "is every cartoon a full color affair / since every day is just like Sunday there." In the meantime, we still feel the loss that can come with death. "Everybody dies, but still it always seems too soon / and so I shed a tear for this cartoon." In the words of George Matheson, we can only look forward to that time when "that morn shall tearless be." 

Michael Dalton

May 21, 2005